Hi everyone
So for my third post I would like to share with you how the
preparation for an event is conducted by the team of Imagine Communications.
Like I underlined in my previous post, having an updated media list is crucial
for an efficient communications with the press about future events because it
is the media which will pass the message towards the different stakeholders.
First the all, the invitations are sent by mail or fax
depending on the media outlets with all the information regarding the event. It
contains the name of client, the date and time, the venue and in some cases the
required dress code depending on the expectation of the client. Ideally like my
supervisor told me, the invitations must be send 2-3 days before the event to the
press-room of the media outlets.
During one event organised by Imagine Communications, I had
to phone several journalists to confirm if they are coming to the event. But
what I witnessed is that journalists in some cases skipped the invitation and
ask if it is possible to resend the invitation again. This little experience
proved that the sending of invitation must be done 2-3 before the event so that
the PR agency could anticipate any problems that may come-up with the press. The
clients usually seek to attract maximum press coverage and that’s why it is
crucial to get the maximum of journalist to be present during the event.
After one event I was told to do some media clipping and
scan that will be send to the client afterwards so that they have an idea about
the feedback that the event has generated. I had also the responsibly to do a
press summary prior of an event. It was interesting to see how media outlets
have different ways of covering the same event. This is the case because not
all media outlets have the same readership. Like for example, the Mauritian
magazine ‘Business Mag’ will focus more on the economic or business part of the
event because the magazine targets mainly businessman.
To conclude I would say that timing very important when
organising an event. Everything should be well structure so that to prevent
unpleasant surprise before the event.
That’s all for now…Stay tune...More to come!
Vincent Thomas
CTI
CTI
15625906
1 comment:
Hello Thomas,
As I read your post, I could completely relate your experience to what happened to me during my internship. I assisted one of my managers during a meeting which was aimed at discussing about the various Public Relations requirements for the event and also had the responsibility to do the follow up before the event. What I realized is that some journalists, as you said, missed some important details or were not aware of the event. The most usual answer to that was that they had not seen the invitation.
What was interesting at that point of time was to see our real duty in that situation. I understood that if you want to attract a media outlet, it is in your responsibility to make sure, personally, that they are aware of your invitation and are well interested in that. I learned that even if some journalists do not come to cover the vent, you have to ensure that your press releases are interesting enough and do reach them in a proper period of time and in the proper mean of communication for coverage.
And what you said about media outlets covering events in different manners is true; and I believe that is the real beauty of our work, because we also have different approaches to target them in order to reach the right audience based on our topic.
I hope you enjoyed your internship and that you are waiting to learn more in this industry.
Keep it up!
Beatrice Etiennette
15633006
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